MacGregor 26 not good? Water-ballast in general??

Well, I have 'heard' of it. Its been built in Spain for many years now I believe, Their price is really high compared to a Mac for example.

 

Forget about the earlier and later models. I had the best model, a 1990 26S or "C" for classic. It was great. Easy to sail. I am in South Jersey. I sold it to three guys who took it back to Newfoundland/Labrador where they sail every summer for the last 4 years. I only sailed in the Chesapk Bay and delaware River and Bay. Not a North Atlantic Boat for me but they love it there. The boat is as good today as ever. Never had trouble with water ballast, centerboard, etc. Would like to have had a 4 stroke 9.9 hp Honda. That was why I sold it. The 1990 Johnson with electric strat was still running fine.
Jack

 

Why should we 'forget about them' ? Have you sailed or owned the later models ?

The 26S had a lot less headroom inside and couldnt get over 8-10 knots under power.

Its good you were pleased with yours, and to hear that the model is surviving well even today, but perhaps you could be a tad more objective with your comments ?

 

I'll take your criticism and try to do better next time rwatson.
For eveyone else I will give an opinion of the MacGregor motor/sailboat. from a friend. He is a licensed pilot of boats up to 65 ft. When you build a boat for two purposes, it does neither very well. Sorry for being so subjective.
Jack

 

And I will try not to be so critical then - but even so, I see you rely on the opinion of another non-owner.

At the risk of repeating the same thought too many times - when a boat does two things quite well (sail and power ) I think it is twice as good as a boat that does only one or the other well.

For example, other trailer sailers of the same size may be 2 or 3 knots faster under sail - but they dont have the interior room, or the ability to go faster than 10-12 knots.

Other motor boats of the same length and weight, cant sail for love nor money.

After you have actually had the chance to enjoy the two abilities combined, then its possible to enjoy two worlds on the water, rather than one.

 

And that statement is quite subjective to your own thoughts as well.

 

yeah - thats why I said "I think"!

 

Years ago a local dealer was getting me to consider the 26X. I was sold on the idea and investgated. I called the factory and spok to a guy in engineering. It's a great boat to serve two purposes on a lake, versitle in the ICW but he told me it was not intended to be used off shore at all. I asked if he would sail it to Hawaii, he said no. He suggested a flicka even a peep hen would be more seaworthy. I was thinking I mentioned this before, the deck lamination is weak and through deck hardware is not set up for offshore sailing...not my opinion, but basically what the guy told me on the phone.

 

Have sailed and powered a 26X in the Ches. Bay. At high speeds that mast waves back and forth. Not my idea of a good thing. The 26 S/C has been sailed to Bermuda many times. The three guys who bought mine were from Newfoundland. They drove 1800 miles to get mine. They said they can sit on there respective porches and watch whales or ice bergs go by. I explained to them that my opinion was that they need a heavier better built boat. But at last report, they enjoy it there in the North Atlantic. Go figure.

 

Wavewacker - Hawaii in a 26 ft trailer sailer !! - a bit ambitious to say the least. Sure, some 26 footers with a lot of ballast would do it. Heck, James Caird, the small boat that Shackleton sailed 800 miles in antartica was 22 ft 6 in long with a 6 ft beam (two tonne of rock ballast) , described as a trip in hell. A Sparkman and Stephens 34, took two young Aussies around the world - but they are very heavily built. Expecting to do Hawaii in a 1.5 tonne boat is a bit .... optimisitic.

If I was offered a $50,000 prize to get a Mac 26 to Hawaii - I would be happy to attempt it - but I would not enjoy it.

Waving mast under power mean the backstay is loose, or your side stays are. There is a post in this thread to a website of a family that did the cold end of the NW coast of US Land - so its not unusual.

 

that rotating mast is always going to fly about they way that has been designed

 

I would do it any day. It is about $10,000 to put it on a freighter and will pocket the difference. But I will never sail a Mac26 out of protected waterways and only in good weather.

 

Very interesting thread .... seems the Mac is joker able to do several task adequately but doesn't excel in any.
I have never sailed but i have been in power boats, if i had the money i would definitely consider a mac (based on what i have read) because it would be a stepping stone for me.
Should sailing be too taxing i can switch to a good old outboard ... Also they area i deploy from has no place for keeping a boat so trailerability is an awesome perc and one that would sell me the boat.

I have to say the concept and marketing of Mac is very clever and such a boat does have a major appeal aimed at beginners and owners looking for convince.

 

The problem is... It doesn't do either job very well.

 

so you say !!!

I say it does both jobs better than specialist boats. It sails better than any motor boat you own, and motors much better than any yacht you own - so it does both jobs very well.

Now lets compare sailing ability - say over a 2 hour race your specialist trailer sailer yacht of a comparable length comes in 20 minutes before the Mac. Not a devastatingly huge margin in the scheme of things, especially under handicapping rules.

Now lets say the launching ramp is 2 miles from the finish line - I will be there in under 10 minutes at 15 mph - but you wont be waiting while I get the boat onto the trailer, because you will be 25 minutes ( at 5 mph under power) later, and will be jostling with the rest of the slow fleet in the ramp jetty, while I am parked in the car park, and have a drink in my hand at the bar. I also wont have had to winch 120 kilos of steel centreboard up before winching the boat and ballast onto my expensive 2.5 ton capacity trailer with $1200 of breakaway gear attached to it.

You will probably need a V8 to tow your trailer sailer home with its 500 kilo of ballast. I will be towing the ballastless Mac home with a family sedan - on a much less expensive trailer.

Lets say the Mac and your similar yacht go for a weeks cruise around the bay - I have nearly twice the living room at night than you do- and I won't have to bark my shins on that centerboard case during the night.

Lets say the two boats are wintering up in the backyard. Yours will sit totally unused over 4 months, while mine will be big enough and comfortable enough for the teenagers to sleep out in every weekend with their rowdy mates and loud music, and I wont hear a thing in the house.

Because the Mac is lighter to handle, roomier and pleasant enough to use as a pointy caravan in bad weather, I will be able to coax my sexy girlfiend out every other weekend, while you will get the 'I cant this weekend - I pulled my back with the centrboard last time out"

Doesnt do either job well ???? Heck - it does about four other jobs better than similar class boats.